"ne4 today" continues at 5:00 a.m. under water -- flooding is once again a big problem. roads look more like rivers in some areas as the high water continues to cause headaches. good morning everyone and welcome to "news4 today," i'm eun yang. and i'm joe krebs, it's tuesday, the 16th of march, 2010. a live look outside, it looks like we have clouds above us out there. 46 degrees, damp as well. we need to know if we're going to get sunshine any time soon. meteorologist tom kierein has the latest, good morning, tom. your wishes will be granted. by later this afternoon we'll get some sun. right now a cloudy start and a tidal flooding along the potomac river as high tide time is 9:30 this moing. right now the radar doesn't show

precipitation around the region. a cloudy start, mid 40s all rnd the region. in washington now, 46. low 40s eastern shore, upper 30s, mountains and it's continuing to be cloudy here. but behave high pressure moving in from the north that will clear us out this afternoon and going clear tonight. upper 30s tomorrow morning. mostly sunny wednesday, into the low 60s. down even milder on thursday and friday. some delightful spring weather coming in. highs in the 60s. morning lows in the 40s. now, jerry, how's our traffic now? >> we'll head out, take a like live on kenilworth avenue. continuing to southeast, very light volume of traffic at this early hour. elsewhere, check things out on the gw parkway, one spot that we'll be watching carefully is as the waters rise near just off the runway, reagan national airport and so far, traffic moving along north and southbound nicely between old town alexandria and the potomac bridges.

joe, eun, back to you. the potomac river continues to inch higher and higher this morning. it looks like it's going to take some time for it to recede. in northwest washington, the water is getting closer to expensive property at the georgetown waterfront and great falls, t river overflowed its banks. and homeowners near the potomac and loudoun county had to move to higher ground. and this morning the georgetown waterfront is attracting the most concern. the water there has already reached its highest level in years. john trippen joins us from the waterfront with more. >> reporter: we're sighing higher-than-normal levels of water. we're off of 34th street and water street. and that's where we're seeing higher-than-normal levels expected. officials saying we're seeing about nine feet above normal. last night during high tide, we

saw ten feet-high water out here in georgetown. we're at high ground. let's take a look at video from yesterday. now all of this high water we're seeing as a result of a wet weekend we had. now you couple that with this snowy winter and what you're going to have is upriver runoff. higher-than-normal levels expected out in georgetown. businesses got a scare yesterday afternoon as water passed here on riverfront businesses. we're also seeing a lot of floodwaters rise over the banks here. and we're seeing also in montgomery county along ferry road we saw a lot of water going along white ferry's road. and it's scaring a lot of residents and businesses in the area. now let's take another look back here live. we're going to see high tide around 9:30 this morning. that's when the water is going to rise once again. and officials say we're going to see flood levels higher than normal expected throughout the rest of the week. and possibly should crest as we

go into the weekend. reporting live from georgetown, eun back to you. flooding continues to be an even bigger problem in other parts of the northeast this morning. the governors of massachusetts, connecticut and rhode island have each declared a state of emergency. the rain has closed roads, toppled trees and forced hundreds to evacuate their homes. at least nine people have died because of the flooding. at one point, more than half a million people lost power. well hundreds of montgomery county workers may soon be out of a jo county executive ike liggett revealed his operating budget. called for cutting jobs. liggett also recommends a ten-day furlough for nonsafety employees. liggett blames high unemployment and low state funding for the crisis. prince george's county is also feeling the pain from this down economy. >> the county executive jack johnson unveiled his proposed

budget yesterday, and it could cost county employees big bucks. >> reporter: prince george's county executive jack johnson unveiled a $2.6 billion budget. tax revenue from real estate took a major hit. johnson said the county went from selling 1200 homes a month in 2006, to 600 in the month of january. he said home values have tanked as well. >> the price has dropped from $340, to right here, less than $100. probably about $180,000, just a huge dropoff in value. >> reporter: activist arthur turner said the county needs to add more commercial and office jobs to the mix and become less dependant on falling real estate taxes. >> gsa tenants, government agencies, state agencies we could have people coming here to work and grow our tax base.

>> reporter: the budget crunch will affect education as well. the school board pass at new budget, calling for the elimination of some 800 positions, about 350 teachers are being laid off. clas sizes are getting bigger. >> that would be a disappointment for the families, especially the hard-working ones that have contributed to the county with their taxes. >> reporter: johnson is calling for county workers to be furloughed for eight days. right now, prince george's county officials are bracing for a $60 million drop in state aid. they're hoping for a smaller cut. >> we know the governor is working with our leaders down here to try to close that budget shortfall. so if we don't lose $60 million from the state, i think we'll see the furloughs being decreased or eliminated. hours after the county's first murder of the year m, pole in arlton arrested their first

suspect. police combed the area for clues yesterday, they say estrada had been stabbed after an argument. now police say they have a suspect. hernandez. he's being charged with murder and held without bond. 46 degrees. he remains the king of pop. >> michael jackson's posthumous cord deal that others can only dream of. and new minimally invasive back procedure coming up. and the gray trend, the forecast and

time for weather and traffic. temperatures are chilly, under a cloudy sky, we're in the 40s around the region. 46 in washington. and we'll have the cloud breaking up by later today. we ought to get some sunshine out. with highs in the upper 50s to near 60. clearing tonight into the upper

30s tomorrow morning. sunny wednesday, thursday and friday. morrow's highs low 60s, may make it into the mid 60s. thursday, friday, into the upper 60s. a look at the weekend coming up in ten minutes. now a check on the tuesday traffic with jerry. we'll head over to the beltway, northern virginia, this is the remnants of the accident we told you about at the beginning of the broadcast. outer loop of the beltway before you get to the dulles toll road. right side of the roadway tied up, police on the scene. but the volume is so light there's no backup. we'll keep a close watch on it. but clearly, the incident does remain right side of the roadway. outer loop approaching the dulles toll road. let's see how we're doing south of town to the wilson bridge, inner and outer loop between alexandria and oxen hill looking good so far. thanks very much. 5:11 is your time, 46 degrees. the cap star told to sit down. the hit that got alex ovechkin suspended. and you know the excuse, the dog ate my homework?

what $20,000 treat one local man's dog get ahold of. and a trip to the beach ends with tragedy. what led to a man being hit by a ♪ [ sniffs ] morning. you got in pretty late last night. dad, i'm not sixteeanymore. still, it was late. well... you're not gonna have to worry about that anymore. yeah, why's that? ♪ todd's a lucky man. ♪ the best part of wakin' up... ♪

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here's a look a the top stories we'r're following today. flooding continues to cause major problems across our area. the potomac river rose over its banks along the georgetown waterfront yesterday.

the rising water has flooded roads in montgomery county and alexandria, virginia. we're getting a better sense of how devastating the economic downturn is for local governments. prince george's county executive jack johnson unveiled his proposed budget yesterday, down about $7 million from last year. and he recommends the county workers be, will be furloughed for eight days. johnson says home values in the county have plummeted over the past few years. montgomery county is facing a financial crunch. facing a deficit of nearly $780 million. the county executive unveiled his proposed budget yesterday, which calls for cutting more than 450 county jobs and recommends ten-day furloughs for nonpublic safety employees. an arrest in the first murder of the year in arlington. reuben hernandez estrada is charged with the murder of rivera estrada. police say the two had gotten into an argument at a restaurant and the suspect followed the victim outside and stabbed him.

a plane making an emergency landing struck and killed a man on a beach in hilton head, south carolina. the plane was flying at 13,000 feet. the pilot couldn' land at the local airport, he was attempting to make an emergency landing on the beach. officials say the lky oil blocked the pilot's vision and a propeller came off. neither person on the plane was injured. activists taking aim at health care, holding a tea party rally here in washington. hoping to kill the president's health care reform plan. nbc's brooke hart is live on capitol hill now with the latest. good morning, brooke. >> reporter: good morning to you, joe, and the focus is o democrats notice house, they're now getting it from all sides, serious arm-twisting from the left and from the right. on the president's health care reform measure. that could see its first major vote as early as thursday. bringing their numbers together again, anti-reform tea party today team up with conservative lawmakers amplifying gop

criticism of the health care overhaul. >> we begin what might be the final chapter of this health care debacle. >> reporter: house democrats used theirumbers in committee to move reform closer to a final vote. >> this is not a government takeover of health care, it's a consumer takeover of health care and it's long overdue. >> reporter: in ohio, pro-am got help from the audience. >> did you hear that, dennis? say that again. vote yes, someone shouted, pressuring dennis kucinich to accept health care change he wants more of. and so the president broadened the call. >> i want to sign them into law, i want some courage. >> reporter: with republicans unified against the measure -- >> washington's not getting the message. reporter: new anti-reform ads like this one aim at uncommitted democrats. from the other side, a major pro

reform union is calling out democrats like mike mcmahon of new york warning him what a no vote could mean for his re-election bid. >> we need someone in that race, maybe as an independent, who can articulate why we need health care reform, because obviously he doesn't believe in it. >> reporter: in the biggest change to health care in 40 years. one senate republican jim dement of south carolina said he's less confident than before that the measure can be stopped. democrats have yet to declare that they have the votes they need. live on capitol hill, i'm brooke hart, back to u. chances are you know someone who struggled with back pain. a new procedure offers relief for those who suffer from back pain. it's literally become a quick fix for back pain sufferers. it's called an aca scope procedure. it begins with a small incision a the the base of the spine. the doctors then use a flexible catheter and fluro scope to find

and fix a wide away of problems. >> for pinched nerves, herniated disks, those type of problems, it's a real effective way to try to eliminate the symptoms with a real minimally-invasive type procedure. >> seven days later i was back in the gym holding mitts for somebody, being able to punch me and so forth, moving around. >> studies show that as many as 80% of americans will suffer from back pain at one point in their lives. and now many are turning to the acura scope procedure for relief. the washington capitals will have to do without alex ovechkin, suspended by the nfl for this hit on brian campbell of the chicago blackhawks on sunday. campbell may miss the rest of the season with a broken collar bone and broken ribs, ovechkin

will also pay more than $ 00,000 in fines. a montgomery county jewelers' dog is gaining international attention because of his expensive tastes. meet solly. in january a diamond dealer brought a $20,000 diamond to the store to show the owner. the dealer dropped it and the dog swallowed it. >> well, it wasn't -- you know, had to go through it, which was not that nice. my cousin, who is a dentist, brought me, h thought it was really funny, bought me a box of rubber gloves. >> well after three days,he diamond appeared, and it was returned to the dealer. solly's owner is now hoping he sticks to more traditional treats. >> would you? >> i might swallow a $20,000 diamond. >> would you go looking for it? >> i think i might, joe. let's check the forecast with tom kierein in storm center

4. >> you just rned my breakfast. well today we have high water again on the potomac river. we may have some minor flooding around the georgetown, alexandria waterfront. the time of high tide is around 9:30 this morning. temperatures now under clouds, 40s. 46 at reagan national. and we do have considerable cloudiness that continues to linger this morning. but we will have the clouds breaking up a bit this afternoon. a little sun coming out. we should climb to near 60 and clearing out tonight, upper 30s by dawn tomorrow. wednesday, should be mostly sunny, afternoon highs into the low 60s and some delightful spring weather for thursday and friday. into the 60s. morning lows, 40s. saturday should be mostly sunny, too, into the 60s. a front coming this sunday afternoon. may give us passing showers and drying out on monday. no jerry, how's the tuesday traffic. germantown, along i-270, passing route 118.

frederick all the way on down with no early issues, and i-70 between baltimore and frederick, moving pretty well. let's see how we're doing in virginia, along 66, volume only from manassas on in. travel lanes open there. metro rail problem, on the red line, sharing the same track between friendship heights and van ness, due to emergency track maintenance. early delays on the red line both ways. and the met and the mark looking good so far. the time now, 5:22, a record deal. >> why michael jackson fans will be hearing new songs from the king of pop for years to come. plus why teachers staged a protest before the d.c. council. and running partners reunited, what is bringing jo

john mccain and sarah palin are coming back together again on the campaign trail. palin is heading out to arizona to campaign for mccain in his tough senate re-election battle against j.d. hayworth. palin will join mccain next week at campaign stops in tucson and phoenix. these stops will be the first time the pair has campaigned together since their presidential election bid. michael jackson has managed

to score the biggest recording deal of all time. sony entertainment has just signed a $200 million contract with jackson's estate. the contract means ten albums over the next seven years. one of the albums will feature never-before-released jrks recordings coming out in november. sony is expected to make the announcement today. 46 degrees right now. two local counties facing major money troubles. at 5:30, what deep cuts are being proposed. plus how the recent drug violence in mexico is impacting american college students. and flooding fears as high tide approaches, where i

pretty big mess out there, people are getting around any way they can with local waterways bursting as high tide approaches. flooding is expected once again today.

good morning, and welcome to "news4 today"ing i'm joe krebs. >> and i'm eun yang. it's tuesday, march 16, 2010. i'm getting ahead of myself already. let's take a look outside right now. heavy clouds overhead, it looks like we're having improvements in the forecast. >> let's go to tom kiere in storm center 4, tom? >> we spring forward one year? [ laughter ] >> i don't want to rush things, tom. >> that will make you groggy. as we start off this morning. temperatures around the region are in the 40s. and we're off to a cloudy start. right now it's 46 in washington. low to mid 40s. prince george's, montgomery and fairfax counties. and in the 40s else where. we have considerable cloudiness, the coastal low is drifting away, and as it does, it should allow high pressure to move in this afternoon, to give as you little sun and highs reaching 60 degrees. overnight tonight, clearing out, into the upper 30s tomorrow morning. during the day on wednesday, we'll have sunshine with

afternoon highs in the low 60s. so some delightful spring weather coming in even milder with sunshine thursday and friday. now the tuesday traffic, jerry, how are we doing at this hour? >> we'll head over, the outer loop of the beltway, accident activity looks like it's completely to the shoulder, it should be gone in a another couple of minutes, no delays, good news there. >> let's see if the good news continues on the beltway norts of town. outer loop of the beltway between new hampshire avenue and university boulevard. potholes are making a reappearance over there. some are huge and could cause damage so police are aware. out on the rails at this hour, metro has taken care of their red line delays, so looking good there. vre and marc all doing fine. back to you. >> flooding continues to cause some major problems across our area this morning. all eyes are on the potomac river as it inches higher and higher. the river, swollen by melting snow, rose up and over its banks

along the georgetown water frobt yesterday. in montgomery county, maryland, white ferry road was covered by water after a tributary rose over i had banks. it flooded nearby farmland, already water-logged from february's record snowfall. the leaders of montgomery and prince george's county submitted their budget proposals yesterday and both plans mean hundreds could soon be out of jobs. in prince george's county, plummeting home sales and values are forcing county executive jack johnson to make tough choices. news4's derrick ward is live with more. good morning. >> reporter: you know, some of the same factors that fuelled prince george's county's growth in the past years are on the wane. tough choices as the pain will be emanating from the county administration building. now the prince george's county budget is down 1.2% from last

year, about $7 million. and while it's a smaller drop than in previous years, it's still a cut, with ripples to be felt in almost all sectors. there will be furloughs. ten compared to 50 last fiscal year. unfilled jobs will stay that way. libraries will be cut and the health department will be cut as well. and the education budget fell about $15 million short of the school system's request. that means about 800 jobs could be on tap, job cuts could be on tap. and 350 teacher layoffs and furloughs of up to two weeks are possible. and a slight increase in class sizes. it's also expected among the factors making it necessary? seeking -- sinking home sales and prices. >> the price has dropped from $340,000, to right here, less than $100, probably $189,000. just a huge dropoff in values. >> public safety is largely held

harmless in this. at least the police department budget will stay flat over last year. and fire department spending will be up 2%. but that's for career fire department spending. volunteer fire department spending could be down about 2%. live in prince george's county, back to you. >> derrick ward reporting live, back to you. and montgomery county executive isaiah leggett revealed his operating budget, it calls for cutting 450 county jobs, including dozens of police positions. leggett also recommends a ten-day furlough for all nonpublic safety employees. facing a deficit of $780 million. the union that represents county employees says it is shocked by leggett's proposal. >> it could mean hardship. it could mean a matter of making it from one pay period to the next it could mean losing a home. >> leggett blames high unemployment and low state funding for the crisis. some of the fired d.c. teachers are demanding that

school chancellor michelle rie for implying that they're sex offenders or child abusers. the teachers and even some parents spoke before the d.c. council yesterday. the t-shirts expected their anger at rie. they're demanding that she say she she's sorry because just a fraction of the teachers let go actually abused students. rie said she's clarified her comments and doesn't need to apologize. >> i'm not going to apologize, because that statement was in fact true. some of the people that we did let go through the rifts are in that position. but what i did think it was important to clarify was that not everybody fell into those categories. and i was clear about that from the outset. and i'm happy to clarify that further. >> some parents praised rie, they say she took on a huge bureaucracy and has made improvements. the oldest member of the u.s. supreme court is considering retiring. justice john paul stevens said he'll decide whether or not to

step down. stevens tells the "new yorker" magazine that he will retire in the next three years. stevens said president barack obama will likely nominate his successor. he's the second-oldest justice in u.s. history. the "new yorker's" profile of stevens appears in its march 22nd issue. a state department travel warning is changing some spring break plans. it applies to a mexican border town after drug cartel opened fire on two suvs. three people died. they had just come from a child's birthday party. this is a latest in a string of killings along mexico's border with texas. college students on spring break are being told if they do travel to mexico, not to stray from the populated tourist areas. the government in yemen is tracking al qaeda targets in the country in that country for a second straight day airstrikes

were carried out. yemen became one of the local, focal points of the war on terror after an al qaeda group in that country claimed to be responsible for a failed attempt to bomb a plane over detroit this past christmas. 5:37 is your time, 46 degrees, he called a s.w.a.t. standoff at a supermarket. >> now police believe they have a clear picture of their suspect. we'll show it to you, coming up. plus metro heeding all the recent recommendations. after a rain-filled dreary days, a forecast you're going to want to see.

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good morning, i'm meteorologist tom kierein, temperature now, 46 in washington, on radar, under this cloudy sky, we may be getting a few sprinkles trying to reach the ground in loudoun county, prince william and culpepper county. they're heading to the south. elsewhere, a cloudy start,

temperatures in the 40s. mid 40s in prince george's county. montgomery, arlington and fairfax counties. and we have some high pressure beginning to push in from the north and west. that should begin to clear our sky out a little bit this afternoon. we ought to get some sun back with highs reaching near 60. clearing tonight. afternoon highs tomorrow, low 60s with sunshine on wednesday. thursday and friday, bright and sunny, highs into the 60s. a look at friday and the weekend in ten minutes, how's the traffic, jerry? a live lock in prince george's county, capital beltway, route 4 around andrews up to landover, doing fine this morning. no issues to report. travel lanes are all open. over in virginia, we have an accident to the far left side of your screen, tractor-trailer accident closes down 123 between lee highway and main street in fairfax. so again, 123 is closed south of lee highway, serious crash involving a tractor-trailer. we'll keep you updated object this. joe, eun? thanks very much. 5:41 now, 46 degrees. ahead, toyota turns up the heat.

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all eyes on the potomac this morning as it inches higher and higher. one of the biggest areas of concern is the georgetown waterfront where we find news4's john shriffen with an update. >> reporter: we'ren 34th and river street. let's look at the potomac river right now. we're on high ground so it's tough to gauge the water right now. but officials are telling us, it's about nine feet higher than normal. now further downstream, last night the potomac, the georgetown waterfront was completely flooded. let's take a look at the video as area residents came out, they were greeted by this -- ankle-high water with the benches that are so popular out here during the warm weather completely flooded. now this flaefoodwater is being created by the wet weather from the past weekend. couple that with the snow runoff upstream and it's a recipe for disaster.

white's ferry road yesterday, was completely submerged. now back on the potomac, boat drivers are having a tough time navigating around the area. let's see what they had to say. >> 20 years, this is the third highest tide i've seen since i've been here. this is pretty big. the tide comes up and it takes everything from the shore and puts it into the river. and so of course, with the water running the way it does, it takes all the debris downriver towards us. so once it gets down towards us, it's a nightmare for us. >> reporter: you can still see debris floating by here in the potomac river. now officials tell us there's still a coastal flood warning in effect until midnight tonight. out on the potomac we're going to see the floodwaters rise around 9:30 this morning. we'll keep an eye on it here to see if it floods over. reporting live from georgetown,

back to you. flooding is causing even bigger problems in other parts of the northeast this morning. the governors of massachusetts, contracts contract and rhode island have all declared a state of emergency. the rain has closed roads, toppled trees and forced hundreds to evacuate their homes. at least nine people have died because of the flooding. in new york city, more than 140,000 people still have no power. the search continues for a gunman -- >> who tried to rob a grocery store in laurel sunday night. this is the man who police say went into the giant store off route 1, pulled a gun and demanded money. the manager locked himself in a freezer and called 911. another employee led customers out of the store, but there was concern that the gunman may have hostages. a s.w.a.t. team raided the store, but did not find a robber, who they believe was able to slip out in the confusion. a warning to parents in prince william county this morning. someone tried to abduct a teenager while she was on her way to school. 7:00 yesterday morning in the

9600 block of saybrook drive and bristol. a 16-year-old girl stepped out of her house to get the bus when a man grabbed her arm and tried to force her back inside. police in arlington work quickly in the first murder of the year. estrada was found badly injured on the sidewalk about a block away from washington boulevard sunday night. he later died. police say estrada had been stabbed after an argument. now detectives say they're located the suspect. anna reuben hernandez is charged with murder, held without bond. an autopsy will determine the cause of death of a man found in silver spring, found in a wooded area near new hampshire avenue. they aren't ready to call it a homicide. but they say the death was suspicious. police describe the victim as a

hispanic man with a moustache in his 30s or 40s. 16-year-old artie ellis pleaded guilty to first-degree murder charges in the death of 57-year-old ollie zaria. who was found dead on a trail in may of last year. ellis said he and his girlfriend, emily geller, lured zaria to the trail to rob him. ellis said he hit him in the face with a shovel and zaria fell backwards, then he hit his head and the man died. geller is scheduled to go on trial in may. now for the latest on toyota's troubles, they've stopped short of calling it a hoax. but this morning, ecutives from the company say california driver's claims of sudden acceleration don't add up. last week, james sykes called 911 saying his toyota prius would not stop. but government testers could not replicate the problem. >> at no point did overheating

of these brakes prevent it from coming to a stop. >> electronic engineer will tell you you probably need to test 1,000 vehicles for 30 days before you have a chance of beginning to find the problem. >> in a statement, the national highway safety administration said these kinds of problems are hard to recreate and we may never know exactly what happened. first lady michelle obama will address the growing problem of childhood obesity this morning. she'll speak at the grocery manufacturers association science forum held here in washington. the first lady will focus on the need to find solutions to fight childhood obesity. she'll call on food manufacturers to provide healthier options for kids. a leisurely trip across the potomac river. water taxis will ferry people across the river from alexandria to nationals park. the potomac riverboat company operates the boats. the rides will be available for

at least 50 of the 81 home games of the washington capitals. $12 one way, $20 round-trip. one would guess you might want the round-trip ticket. and hotdogs, popcorn soda and beer will be sold on board. emergency crews in stafford county, virginia, successfully rescue a man clinging to the rocks at the rappahannock river. rescue swimmers used a rope system to reach the man, who was conscious, the rescuers removed him from the river and paramedics transported him to mary washington hospital. no fire or rescue personnel were injured. 5:51 is our time. time for traffic and weather on the 1's. let's check in with meteorologist tom kierein. all the rivers are swollen after the rain and we want to dry up. >> it doesn't look like we'll see the rivers receding, it can be dangerous on the river and

dangerous out to be there in a kayak or a boat. a live shot of the river. the big muddy, the potomac river, georgetown waterfront. and it's likely going to be some flooding, but probably not as bad as last night, time of high tide at 9:30 this morning. radar showing a few sprinkles trying to reach the ground in prceilliam county, into rts of southern fauquier into culpepper county. we're in the 40s, 46 in washington, low 40s in prince george's county, montgomery, arlington, fairfax counties in the mid 40s. near the bay in southern maryland, northern neck, eastern shore, low to mid 40s. mid 40s around the blue ridge and the shenandoah valley. chillier in the mountains, upper 30s there. and above freezing all around the region under this cloud cover. the pesky coastal low is drifting away and allowing the high pressure to move in. and that ought to give us some sun by this afternoon. between now and then, cloudy and a blustery northerly to

northwesterly wind gusting to around 20 miles per hour. by noon-time, the mid 50s. may hit near 60 by mid afternoon. sunrise, 7:18. sunset, 7:16, getting closer to the equinox. the sunrises and sunset times will be around the same time on the clock each afternoon and each morning. as we take a look at the evening, the by yet tomorrow during the afternoon and we'll see temperatures climbing just into the perhaps low 60s. and then on thursday and again on friday, should make it into the mid 60s thursday, friday, into the upper 60s. so really nice spring weather coming in. this high pressure is going to be in place here for seval days. now, as we get into the weekend. saturday should be bright and sunny, maybe some clouds rolling in by the end of the day. highs reaching the mid and upper 60s again. then some sun sunday morning, clouding up in the afternoon. looks like could get some showers sunday afternoon and evening as the front comes through. bringing in somewhat cooler

weather for mob and partly cloudy. now, jerry, how's the tuesday traffic? >> we'll take a live look. we're picking up volume now, left side of the screen, southbound i-270 approaching montgomery village avenue. at the moment from frederick to urbana headed down to germantown, a little bit of volume, no ibs dents to report, the travel lanes are open and for the most part, dry pavement. good news after yesterday. in from the west, dulles toll road doing fine. 66 no worries. in fairfax, 123 is closed to traffic, in the stretch between main street and lee highway because of an accident involving a tractor-trailer. that stretch of 123 south of lee highway is closed. authorities will help you around that. 95 and 395, looking good, headed into town so far this morning. joe and eun, back to you. thank you. metro has apparently decided on a chis for safety director. metra wants james doherty,

currently the director of safety for san francisco. this is onef the most important vacancies in metro's ranks. metro spokeswoman says that metro has not made an offer to doherty or to anyone yet for the chief safety job. which has been vacant since mid december. metro's police chief was put in charge of safety while metro recruited a replacement. happening today, don't be surprised if you see some pa pachyderms prancing around downtown washington, the circus is in town and today is the annual elephant walk. the elephants will march in front of the capital building and along the national mall. the circus will be at the verizon center from march 18 to the 21st. a dog in rockville is getting attentionor his expensive taste in jewelry. >> the dog's owner is a jeweler and accidentally the dog swallowed a $20,000 diamond.

news4's john chiffon tells us how the problem was resolved. >> one more. there you go. >> reporter: solly is munching on doggy treats now, but don't be fooled. this cute golden retriever has expensive tastes. his owner, george kaufmann found that out the hard way. it happened in january when the diamond dealer brought a gem similar to this for the owner to check out. but he dropped it. >> i went to pick up the diamond, wasn't there any more. i looked around, didn't see it. grabbed his head, open his mouth. look inside, nothing there. i felt him swallowing. >> kaufmann scrambled to figure out how to get the diamond out of the dog's stomach. after calling the vet, the solution was to check the dog every day. >> my cousin thought it was

funny, he brought me a box of rubber gloves. >> kaufmann endured three days of sifting until finally, a diamond in the rough. >> it was like hitting pay dirt, you know, the gold rush. >> this bizarre story is gaining international headlines. it was picked up by the national enquirer. when we were there, the bbc called for a live interview. kaufmann said going to the local bank is an adventure. >> somebody said, oh, this is the dog that ate the diamond? so, he's, he's getting to be more well known. >> reporter: john schriffen, "news4 today." after all that, kaufmann decided not to buy the diamond. the diamond was not damaged. he said it takes a lot more than a little stomach acid to harm that kind of stone. would you buy a diamond after it's been through all of that? >> i think so, if you put it through the washing machine. >> clean it up really well? >> i think so, sure. coming up at 6:00, the controversial resolution being presented today in maryland. why one local county wants to

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rising concerns this morning, flooding is causing major problems along the potomac, as many neighborhoods are washed out. but meteorologist tom kierein has some good news for you. good morning, everyone, and welcome to "news4 today," i'm eun yang. and good morning, i'm krebs krebs. today is tuesday, the 16th day of march, 2010. a live look outside this morning. 46 degrees. cloudy skies. we'll see whether we'll get any more rain today. >> let's check in with meteorologist tom kierein in the storm center. >> the potomac is about a foot lower this morning than it was this time yesterday morning. so it is gradually receding. but still during the times of high tide, we could have some high water. right now as we take a look

around the region radar we're picking up a few sprinkles in prince william into stafford county. and now into culpepper county, that's drifting to the south. the time of high tide this morning is 9:30, when we could have more tidal flooding along the potomac. right now we're in the 40s around the region. 46 in washington, still have the low pressure system off the coast, drifting south and east, allowing high pressure to come in, nshine and highs nearing 60s. clearing out for tomorrow morning and sunny wednesday, sunny thursday and fridaynd a bit milder both days. and now jerry, how's the traffic. we'll take a live look, we're getting busy now along i-95 northbound. headed up to lorton. the good news is from fredericksburg up, it's just volume, no incidents, no accidents, broken-down cars to worry for the moment. so good news there. let's see how we're doing t side of the beltway.

the large pot holes are making a reappearance, outer loop of the belt ware after new hampshire, along the right side, a bad one reported. accident in fairfax closes 123 south of main street, a tractor-trailer involved. detours are in place. it looks like it could be that way for a while. 66 and the toll road, so far, so good. joe and eun, back to you. well flooding continues to cause some major problems across our area. the potomac river swollen by melting snow, rose up and over its banks along the georgetown waterfront yesterday. now it's threatening nearby homes and businesses, meanwhile, miles north in montgomery county, white ferry road was covered by water after a tributary rose up over its banks. it flooded nearby farmland, already waterlogged from february's record snowfall. >> we live in the farm next door and i've been here for 13 years and never seen anything like this. >> in 20 years, this is the third highest tide i've seen since i've been here.

so this is pretty big. >> and in old town alexandria, many streets are blocked off because inches of water cover the ground. flooding is a bigger problem in other parts of the northeast this morning. the governors of massachusetts, connecticut and rhode island have each declared a state of emergency. the rain has closed roads, toppled trees and forced hundreds to evacuate their homes. at least nine people have died because of the flooding. at one point more than half a million people lost power. we've have a warning for parents in prince william county. someone tried to abduct a teenagered yesterday on her way to school. police say a 16-year-old girl stepped out of her house to get on the school bus, when a man grabbed her arm and forced her back inside. the girl began to scream, the suspect then ran away. and the teenager was not hurt. well hours after the county's first murder of the year, police in arlington arrested a suspect sunday night, 20-year-old gevarra estrada was

found badly injured on the sidewalk on north pershing drive. police combed the area for clues, they say estrada had been stabbed after an argument and police say they've located the suspect, reuben hernandez estrada is being charged with murderheld without bond. local governments are feeling the pinch from the financial crisis. prince george's county executive jack johnson presented his budget proposal, calling for serious cuts. news4's derrick ward is live with more in upper marlborough. the days of growth in prince george's county are over. that's the case all over because of a flagging economy. but less aid from annapolis means more cuts here in upper marlboro. hardest-hit agencies include public health and public works. some spending cuts come through

attrition, not filling unfilled jobs. but that will only get you so much. there will be about ten furlough days expected, a lot less than last year. but still, it hurts if you're among those people that are furloughed, a furlough is a temporary pay cut. school spending will be about $1$ $15 million short. prince george's county is not unique in maryland. state aid is down. but falling revenue from home sales and lower prices only make matters even worse. >> the price has dropped from $340,000 to $less than 100, probably $189,000, just a huge dropoff in value. >> now, the good news is that there is any, is that public safety spending will remain about where it was last year. as a matter of fact, spending for the fire department will be up 2%. but that is for career

firefighting. volunteer fire departments will see a 2% decrease spending. live in upper marlboro. back to you. montgomery county could be laying off hundreds of its employees under county executive isaiah leggett's new budget. it calls for cutting 450 county jobs, including dozens of police positions. leggett also recommends a ten ep-day furlough for nonpublic safety employees, a deficit of $780 million, leggett blames it on high unemployment and low state funding for the crisis. today the federal is expected to keep interest rates at their historically low levels. the fed's open market committee will meet to discuss whether to raise rates. but most economists say no indication any increase is in the cards. they believe that rates will be low for six more months. the key federal funds rate has be at 0% since december of

2008. coming up, where man was killed by a plane. and all he was doing was walking on the beach. the king of pop isn't done yet. the details behind the new $200 record deal for michael jackson's estate. when you might see the sun

than to the lights of the city of washington, d.c. we're going to check the forecast now from meteorologist tom kierein. see whether the rain is going to continue today. i don't think so. but we do have a few sprinkles showing up on radar where you see the little blue specks, those are sprinkles reaching the ground in southern prince william. northern stafford and parts of fauquier and culpepper counties.

we're in the 40s around the region from mount pleasant to brandywine, laurel, herndon and potomac. we have a cloudy sky. we'll have the clouds probably breaking up a bit this afternoon. it should climb into the upper 50s to near 60s. sunny tomorrow, into the low 60s after a chilly start. chilly again thuday morning, but sunny in the afternoon, mid 60s. upper 60s on friday. a look at the weekend in ten minutes, how's the traffic now, jerry? >> we'll find things are actually moving along well so far this morning. everyone must be in a good mood. the forecast headed down along the pike, interstate 66, no accidents, haymarket all the way in. 123 is closed south of lee highway in fairfax base of that accident. let's head over and see if anything is exciting is developing along 16th street. the usual minor delays getting the turn into walter reed, but no accidentso report all the way in this morning, joe and eun, back to you. it could be a supreme shakeup for the nation's highest court.

the justice who is talking about retirement. new information about the murders of two americans in mexico. authorities say it could be a [ male announcer ] the laurel is a reward for achievement. ♪ reward yourself at the cadillac laurel event, with an cts sport sedan.

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a plane making an emergency landing struck and killed a man on a beach in hilton head, south carolina. the plane began leaking oil and flying at 13,000 feet. the pilot couldn't land at the local airport, and was attem attempting an emergency landing on the beach. officials say the leaking oil blocked the pilot's vision and he says the plane's propeller came off. the plane hit the man on the beach and everyone on board the plane is okay. the united states is warning all americans heading to mexico to be on alert after three people with ties to the u.s. consulate were killed by suspected drug gangs on saturday. this this applies to mexican border towns in particular. all three victims had just come from a child's birthday party hosted by another consulate employee. investigators think this might have been a case of mistaken identity and their diplomatic status might not have had anything to do with this. >> be leery about jumping to any conclusions at this point. that's all part of the

investigation. >>saturday's murders took place in juarez, where 2600 people were killed in drug violence last year alone. college students on spring break are told if they travel to mexico, not to stray from populated tourist areas. the oldest member of the supreme court is considering retirement. 89-year-old justice john paul stevens says he will decide next month weather to step down. stevens told the "new yorker" magazine he'll retire in the next three years. his comments suggest that president barack obama, who stevens says he admires, will likely nominate his successor. stevens is the second-oldest justice in u.s. history and the fourth longest serving. the "new yorker's" profile of stevens appears in its march 22nd issue. john mccain and sarah palin are coming back together again on the campaign trail. john mccain is facing a tough re-election bid in his election. tucson and phoenix will be the first time the pair has

campaigned together since the presidential election bid. tea party will be held in washington hoping to kill the president's health care reform plan. nbc's brooke hart continues. >> reporter: bringing their numbers again, anti-reform tea partyists team up with conservative lawmakers, amplifying gop criticism of the health care overhaul. >> we begin what might be the final chapter of this health care debacle. >> democrats used their reform to move it to a vote. >> it's a consumer takeover of health care, long overdue. >> reporter: that was president obama's argument. in ohio, he got help from the audience. >> did you hear that? dennis, say that again. >> vote yes, someone shouted. pressuring democrat, dennis kucinich he wants more of. the president broadened the

call. >> so i'm calling on congress to pass these reforms and i'm going to sign them into law. i want some courage. >> reporter: with republicans unified against the measure, n anti-reform ads like this one aim at uncommitted democrats. heat, too, from the other side. a major pro reform union is calling out democrats like mike mcmahon of new york, warning him what a no vote could mean for his re-election bid. >> weeed someone in the race, maybe as an independent. who can articulate why we need health care reform, because obviously he doesn't believe in it. >> reporter: in the biggest change to health care in 40 years. one senate republican, jim dement said he's less confident that the bill can be stopped. in washington, brooke hart, nbc news. a make or break health care vote has president barack obama working overtime. turning up the heat on democratic lawmakers and has had

one-on-one sessions in the past few days. and house speaker nancy pelosi may try to pass it without a vote. she could use a common procedural move known as deem and pass. to pass the bill without a vote. first lady michelle obama plans to speak before some of the nation's largest food corporations today to try to convince them to make healthier snacks for kids. mrs. obama will speak at the grocery manufacturers science forum this morning. she'll focus on the need to find solutions to fight childhood obesity and will talk about school lunches and vending machines and ways to make healthy food more accessible to kids. well alex ovechkin will be out for the capitals for the next two games after the nhl suspended him for what they considered to be a dirty hit. ovechkin slammed brian campbell of the chicago blackhawks.

ovechkin said he didn't mean to hurt campbell. >> i didn't hit him hard, i just push him. but he fell bad. and that's probably you can see every play that happens, every battle. >> ovechkin will lose more than just playing time, it will cost him $230,000. he's now considered to be a repeat offender because he was also suspended earlier this season. gilbert arenas's sentencing is set for next week and before his court date he did an interview with esquire magazine. he said he needs to be punished for bringing guns into the locker room at the verizon center. the wizards' guard said, quote, i have a painting of him in my garage, i walk by it with my head down. and i walk by and said, if abe

was still with us, i would say, i sorry to you, i deserve to be punished, i'll do everything it takes to get back your husband's respect. arenas pled guilty to a gun charge in january. the echoir magazine hits newsstands next week. time for weather and traffic. >> let's check in with meteorologist tom kierein. tom, we'rexcited about the forecast. >> me, too. we deserve it after several soggy days, things are drying out this morning. still radar showing a few sprinkles here in stafford and fauquier and cull pep per counties. now 46 in washington. and from berry farm to oxen hill, largo, springfield and clarksburg, it's still cloudy. but we ought to get sub back this afternoon with highses reaching near 60. afternoon highs low 60s. even bit milder with sunshine on thursday and friday. here's a look at the weekend. saturday should be mostly sunny, into the 60s again. increasing clouds sunday might

get some showers afternoon and evening. now jerry, how's the traffic. chopper 4 out and about this morning. watching for any mow tension traffic trouble spots. looking pretty good on the capital beltway around tyson's corner area, the accident we had earlier this morning, long gone on the outer loop at the toll road. a little volume here and there, nothing to fear so far this morning. elsewhere heading into the northeast, new york avenue, down passing florida avenue, it looks like we're doing okay. headed into the northwest and beyond this morning. we have one problem in fairfax city, last report, 123 was closed south of main street, because of an accident involving a truck. police are on the scene. eun, back to you. why you'll see a show like no other walking around capitol hill today. michael jackson continues to cash in, the new record deal for the king of pop. a d.c. council hearing gets heated. find out why one student compared school chancellor

even in death, michael jackson is still breaking records. the king of pop's estate has reportedly just signed the biggest recording deal in history. a $200 million contract with sony music entertainment that involves ten projects over seven years. one of the albums will feature never-before-released jackson recordings coming out in november. well don't be surprised to see elephants prancing around downtown washington. if i see pachyderms prancing around downtown washington, i will be surprised. the circus is in town and today's the annual elephant parade. the ringling brothers circus will bring the elephants to town 1:00 p.m. today. they'll march in front of the capitol building and along the national mall. your time now is 6:26. the attempted abduction in

northern virginia, where a teenager was grabbed on the way to school. drivers get caught in high water, new pictures of a river rescue overnight. and when the clouds will start to clear out, your weather and traffic together, host: could switching to geico really save you 15% or more on car insurance? host: did the waltons take way too long to say goodnight? mom: g'night john boy. g'night mary ellen. mary ellen: g'night mama. g'night erin. elizabeth: g'night john boy. jim bob: g'night grandpa. elizabeth: g'night ben. jim bob: elizabeth: g'night jim bob. jim bob: g'night everybody,

grandpa: g'night everybody. jim bob: g'night daddy. vo: geico. 15 minutes could save you 15% or more.

rising concerns -- this morning, flooding is causing major problems along the potomac river as many areas remain under water. find out when the conditions will begin to dry out. good morning and welcome back to "news4 today," i'm joe krebs. >> and i'm eun yang, we're taking a live look on this tuesday, march 16th, 2010. a beautiful look at nation's capital over there and some cloudy skies overhead. we've had a lot of rain in the area, now we want a nice, dry day. >> let's see if meteorologist tom kierein will deliver it to us. tom in. >> we'll be drying out, but all the runoff continues to swell the waters of the potomac river. high tide is just about three hours away.

minor flooding is likely probably not as much as it was last night because the potomac is about a foot lower this morning. but the tidal flooding is possible. the waterfront in washington and alexandria this morning at mid morning. now as we take a look at radar, getting a few sprinkles in southern fauquier county, parts of stafford and culpepper and orange county. 46 in washington, from benning to suitland, seat pleasant. burke and wheaton, we have a cloud cover with us on this tuesday, but some sunshine may break out this afternoon. highs reaching upper 50s to near 60. 30s tomorrow morning. even milding with sunshine thursday and friday. jerry, how's the traffic. chopper 4 over the scene of the tractor-trailer accident, we've been talking about in fairfax. 123 at kenmore drive, just south of lee highway, 123 closed both directions between lee highway and main street. authorities on the scene and they have is the up detours for you. let's head over to see how we're

doing along i-270, no hang-ups, geantown from clarksburg down lanes still remain available for you. out on the rails, okay on metro rail. vre 2 train delays on the fredericksburg line 300 and 302. m.a.r.c. rail, no delays this morning so far. good news there. emergency crews in stafford county, virginia, successfully rescue a man clinging to the rocks of the rain-swollen rappahannock river last night 8:40 below the route 95 overpass. rescuers used a rope system to reach the man. they removed him from the river and paramedics transported him to mary washington hospital. no fire or rescue personnel were injured. if you're thinking about taking a walk along the georgetown waterfront any time soon, you might want to think again. the potomac river has risen, flooding that area as well as many others around the region.

john shriffen joins us with more. what does k street look like, is that dry or flooded? >> reporter: actually right now it's pretty dry. we're on high ground right in front of the potomac. it's flooding here in d.c. officials say is not as uncommon as people might think. traditionally around this time of year the waters rise as the snow begins to melt. but the problems we're having is because we'vead so much snowfall this past winter and it accumulates, that now that it's starting to melt, the waters are rising higher than normal. look at the video we shot from yesterday, this is the yorjtown prom in addition. as you can see, completely flooded. the benches so popular during e warm weather, out of action. in montgomery county, the shots of white ferry road, shut down yesterday as the floodwaters also got into nearby resident's homes and farms. now residents we've spoken to in this area say it's something they haven't seen before. >> it's amazing, absolutely

amazing. beam would have fun there over on the dock, now covered with water. ? i've never seen this. we live on the farm next door and i've been here for 13 years and never seen anything like that. >> reporter: now it might be tough to see it now, but debris branches, run off into the water as the snow begins to melt. making it difficult for boats as they're out here on the potomac here behind me. the water has subsided a little bi a foot less than yesterday. but on the georgetown promenade, high tide is expected at 9:30 this morning. and the flooding is even worse in other parts of the northeast this morning the governors of massachusetts, connecticut and rhode island have all declared states of emergency. the rain has closed roads, toppled trees and forced hundreds to evacuate their

homes. at least nine people have died because the flooding. and in new york city, more tn 140,000 people still have no power. a warning to parents in prince william county. someone tried to abduct a teenager, around 7:00 yesterday morning in the 9600 block of saybrook drive in bristow. police say a 16-year-old girl stepped out of the house to get the school bus when a man grabbed her arm and forced her back inside. the girl began to screen and the suspect ran away. police in arlington worked quickly in the county first murder of the year. they've made an arrest, 20-year-old gayin estrada was found badly injured on north pershing drive about a block from washington boulevard and he later died. police say estrada had been stabbed after an argument and they've located the person who did it, reuben hernandez estrada is charged with murder. he's currently being held without bond. and police in montgomery

county are trying to figure out whether a man whose body was found near the belt way in silver spring was murdered. they found the victim yesterday in a wooded area near the exit from 495 on to new hampshire avenue. the medical dpmer is performing an autopsy. critics have called michelle rhee many names, but one student is comparing the chancellor to dolores upbridge. students are angry that their principal had been reassigned by rhee. inside the building, teachers recently fired told the d.c. council that rhee should be fired for implying that they were sex offenders or child abusers. rhee said she's clarified her comments and doesn't need to apologize. >> i maintain to this date which is i'm not going to apologize,

because the statement was in fact true. some of the people that we did let go through the rif are in that position. but what i did think it was important to clarify, is that not everybody fell into these categories. i was clear about that from the outside and i'm happy to clarify it further. >> some patients praised rhee, they said she took on a huge bureaucracy and has made improvements. "the today show" begins at top of the hour. let's go live to meredith vieira with more. coming up on this tuesday morning on "today," dangerous flooding across much of the northeast after the deadly weekend storms. we're live with the latest. then tiger woods and his wife, elin, photographed together for the first time since the golfer's sex scandal exploded. plus, kirsten alley opening up about her weight struggles. this morning, what i'd be

doing if i didn't have this job. i would be a producer and they let me test my skills by producing kathie lee and hoda and i have the scars to prove it we'll show you what happened when we get started on a tuesday morning here on "today." >> i can't wait to see that, that looks exciting, thanks, meredith. >> oh, man, that was a mess. thank you. >> were you a screamer? >> me, a screamer? well you know, you can scream all you want at those two, they don't listen, anyway. >> i can imagine. >> i was more of a drinker. well then you joined our club thanks very much. exactly. have a great day. the controversial resolution being presented today in maryland, why one local county wants to secede from the state. federal investigators close in on what was the real factor behind the run away prius.

6:41, time for weather and traffic. temperatures in the 40s, it's cloudy. later on, maybe a little sun breaking out with highs near 60. sun request on wednesday, a bit milder, sunny thursday and friday as well.

now jerry, how's the traffic on this tuesday morning? back to chopper 4, progress is being made, it looks like route 123 south of lee highway, the scene of this morning's accident, some traffic, if not all getting by. a quick check elsewhere, 395 loading up, lanes open. montgomery county, stretch of the beltway very heavy now leaving college park headed over to silver spring. eun and joe, back to you. thanks a lot. our time is 42, 46 degrees, his job will be to keep you safe as you travel around town. metro narrows its list of choices for its next safety chief. the plans for two local

hundreds of montgomery county workers may soon be out of a job. county executive isaiah leggett revealed his recommended operating budget yesterday, that

calls for cutting more than 450 county jobs, including dozens of police positions. he also recommends a ten-day furlough for nonpublic safety employees. montgomery county is facing a deficit of $780 million. leggett blames high unemployment and low state funding for the crisis. prince george's county is facing similar financial hardships, county executive jack johnson presented hisudget proposal yesterday and layoffs there are possible, especially for teachers. news4's derek ward is live in upper marlboro with more. >> reporter: you know less money in the pipeline from annapolis means more cuts are on tap for prince george's county from here in upper marlboro. the county's budget this year is $700 million smaller than last year. the hardest-hit agencies are in the public health and public works sector. some spending cuts will come through attrition, that is not filling unfilled jobs, but that can only do so much. so about ten furlough days are expecteds, as a lot less than last year but still hurts for

those who are hit by temporary pay cut. school spending will be about $15 million short of what the school system requested. as many as 350 teachers could be laid off and class size increase as well. prince george's county is not unique in maryland. state aid is down. but falling revenue from home sales and lower sales prices make mat earns even worse and it's the result, more than the reason that affects parents most. >> i think it will be you know, kind of a disappointment for the families. especially the hard-working ones that have contributed to the county with their tax. now state aid is down, is expected to be down by about $60 million, the worst-case scenario they've planned for. hopefully the state aid will be increased and some cuts and some impact from them could be leened here in prince george's county. live in upper marlboro, back to you. well could frederick county, maryland, become america's 51st state?

a frederick county commissioner is proposed that the county actually secede from maryland to become its own state. republican lenny thompson isn't happy with the state's fiscal policies and recently announc the proposed resolution. the resolution will be discussed at today's commissioner's work session in frederick. the federal reserve board wraps up its two-day policy eting today downtown. the questions everyone wants to know -- what will happen with interest rates. cnbc's courtney reagan joins us live with a preview. >> good morning, right now futures are pointing to a higher open. investors looking a little optimistic, expect somewhat of a holding pattern today in trading as we wait for the fed decision that comes after 2:00 p.m. today. the fed is unlikely to raise interest rates this month. but any change in language may indicate the central bank has planned to raise them in the near future. so it's really the details in the wording today. that we're going to be paying close attention to. a new affordable broadband plan will be unveiled today as

part of the american recovery and reinvestment act. a special task force plans to change how americans communicate. blueprints for the $20 billion plan go to the ftc today and congress on wednesday. the king of pop lives on, signing one of the largest recording deals in history. nine months after his death. sony has agreed to pay up to $250 million to michael jackson's estate for ten projects over the next seven years. sony will capitalize on jackson's posthumous appeal which has sold more than 31 million albums worldwide. but sony isn't just counting on cd sales, they're hoping to profit off audio rights to theater, and computer games. >> thank you. well they've stopped short of calling it a hoax, but toyota executives say a california man's claim that his prius would not stop just don't match up. last week, james sykes frantically called 911 saying

his toyota prius would not stop while going 90 miles per hour down the highway. but government testers could not replicate that problem. toyota also says sykes' story has quote, significant inconsistencies. >> at no point did overheating of these brakes prevent it from coming to a stop. >> electronic engineer will tell you, you probably need to test 1,000 vehicles for 30 days before you have a chance of beginning to find the problem. >> in a statement, the national highway safety administration says these kinds of problems are very hard to recreate. and we may never know what happened. metro has narrowed its pick for director of safety. james doherty, who is currently the director of safety for the san francisco munical transportation agency is who the board of directors want for its top safety job. board members consider this one of the most important vacancies in metro senior ranks during a difficult time for the transit agency. metro spokesperson says than

metro has not made an offer to doherty or anyone yet for the chief safety job, which has been vacant since mid december. metro's police chief was put in charge of safety. a dog in montgomery county is getting some international attention because of his expensive tastes. look at solly. his owner, also owns a jewelry store in rockville. back in january, a diamond dealer brought a $20,000 diamond similar to this one into the jewelry store. when the owner pulled it out, he dropped it. before he could get to it, solly swallowed it. the owner called the vet, who advised -- letting nature take its course. >> well, it wasn't that pleasant. had to go through it, which was not that nice. my cousin, who is a dentist, brought me -- he thought it was really funny, brought me a box of rubber gloves. >> well now that is truly a diamond in the ruff. after three days, the diamond appeared and was returned to the dealer. i wonder if he told him what happened.

solly's owner is now hoping he sticks to more traditional treats. do you think andy wrote that? let's check in with meteorologist tom kierein for the latest on the forecast. everybody's been growling about the weather, too. and thankfully, you'll be happy to see some sunshine perhaps back by later this afternoon, but still dealing with high water on the potomac. about a foot lower this morning than it was yesterday morning. still some tidal flooding in the washington, alexandria waterfronts at 9:30 this morning, around the high tide. and temperatures in the 40s from trinidad to morningside and landover, annandale, you willol. out of the mountains in the upper 30s, the clouds coming from the stubborn coastal low pressure system that's finally drifting away from the atlantic seaboard. so for this morning, getting back to school this morning, cloudy day. starting off, sunrise is at 7:18. it will be a bit breezy at the

bus stop. temperatures in the 40s through the morning hours. and then we should hit the 50s by noon time. and during the afternoon, maybe a little sun breaking out. in fact by 3:00, up around 60 degrees. sunset at 7:16, by then we'll be back down into the 50s. by midnight, the upper 40s under a clear sky. in the upper 30s, wednesday should be bright and sunny with highs in the low 60s. thursday and friday both days, sunny, morning lows, low to mid 40s afternoon highs mid and upper 60s. so some delightful spring weatr coming in. now here's a look at the weekend. saturday should be mostly sunny, afternoon highs into the 60s. and then maybe a little sun sunday morning, clouding up during the day. maybe an afternoon or even shower as the front comes in, a bit cooler, but drying out monday. jerry, how's the traffic in. >> chopper 4 is over what's left of an accident 123 south of main street. travel lanes are open once again, flashing lights a very minor distraction on 123 between

lee highway and main street. let's see how we're doing, loaded up, lots of brake lights at the 14th street bridge, no accidents, all volume on the lower 14th street, continuing on 395. 270, a lot of backed-up traffic south through germantown, gaithersbu and rockville. lanes open. on the rails, metro is fine, vre fredericksburg, delays on 300, 302 and 306. m.a.r.c. rail, no delays reported at this hour. for montgomery county maryland to alexandria, virginia and the georgetown waterfront, many parts of our area are under water now, causing concern for home and business owners this morning. we're joined from georgetown with an update. >> reporter: good morning, eun, right now it's a beautiful scene, runners are out enjoying the nice, dry pavement, a scene that is drastically different from what we saw out here last night. you can see the georgetown promenade is completely flooded.

the water rose in some parts to the bench level. that wasn't the only thing, parts of montgomery county under water. white's ferry road flooded with area homes and farms. i spoke to u.s. park service a little while ago, it said it bhe believes the worst of the floodwater weather is behind us. a live look now on the potomac. you can partially see the debris. park police are out, they say they are monitoring the situation now as the high tide is getting set to roll in around 9:30 this morning. but park police said the water has gone down about a foot or more since yesterday. and they do believe that the worst is behind us. reporting live from georgetown, john shriffen, back to you. a final check on our top stories this morning. parents in prince william county on high alert after someone tried to abduct a teenager on her way to school. it happened yesterday morning on saybrook drive in brist. police say a 16-year-old girl

stepped out of her home to get to the school bus when a man grabbed her arm and forced her back inside. the girl screamed and the suspect ran away. a plane making an emergency landing struck and killed a man on a beach in hilton head, south carolina. the plane began leaking oil and flying at 13,000 feet. the pilot couldn't land at the local airport and attempted to make an emergency landing on the beach. today activists will hold a rally, aimed at killing the president's health care plan. in the house, the democrats are getting it from all sides. a make or break health care vote could come as early as this thursday. first latedy michelle obama will address the growing problem of childhood obesity this morning. she'll focus on the need to find solutions to fighting obesity and call on food manufacturers to provide healthier options. a final check on the forecast now with meteorologist tom kierein. nationals opening day, only 20 days away and there's the sky over washington, the first light

of dawn now beginning to show up. live view our sky watcher camera. temperatures in the 40s, 46 in washington. we have considerable cloudiness but it appears we'll get breaks in the clouds later today and climb in temperature. sunny tomorrow, thursday and friday, warmer each day, how's the traffic? 270, volume only from frederick to rockville. travel lanes are open. 395 to the 14th street bridge, both ways looking good. that's "news4 today," thanks for starting your day with us. we hope you join us tomorrow morning, we start at

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